Sometimes living in a big city where bar hopping and cool club events are the norm on weekends, it seems as though you can’t have any fun without being of the legal drinking age. This is especially an issue for people on holidays, where drinking has became the de facto way of having a good time. However, FYI you don’t need to drink to have fun on a holiday. This is especially true for a holiday such as Halloween, since dressing up in costumes, getting candy, and being spooked on creepy trails excites everyone. Boston offers a ton of underrated Halloween festivities for those too old to trick or treat for too long yet too young to go to a Halloween party at a bar.
Ghosts and Gravestones Tours
These tours go on from April to October, but are great for getting in the Halloween spirit. The tour combines a trolley ride with walking to scary sites in the city. Tour guides in gravedigger costumes show you around while telling scary stories about the Day of Darkness in the colonial times, the ghost of Boston Harbor, and the Lady in Black. It also involves a visit to two graveyards. To attend a ghost tour, all you need to do is reserve a time at night.
Beacon Hill with a Boo!
This is an hour and a half haunted trail at 6:30pm on Halloween only. It is $20 per person and $10 for each group member. The tour guides tell stories of legendary ghosts and mysterious murders that occurred in the neighborhoods of Beacon Hill. Tours stop at the home George Parkman, who was murdered inside and to where Quakers were hanged centuries ago. The houses are also decorated beautifully for the holiday, adding to the mood of the night.
ImprovBoston’s GoreFest 11 – Macabr-et
This is an annual, one night musical for Halloween. It has a lot of blood and gore, but is essentially a comedy show. This is good for anyone who gets easily scared and doesn’t like creepy things. The show takes place in ImprovBoston’s Theatre in Cambridge, which is accessible by the Red Line. Tickets are $18 and the show begins at 7:30pm.
Halloween Pizza Party
From 9pm to 12am on Halloween, Regina Pizzeria in the North End, which is voted the number one pizzeria in the country. There will be a costume contest, live music by Krill who will be featuring The Pixies, Cuffs as Sonic Youth, and Vundabar and pizza. There is no charge for entry.
Paradise Rock Club
Paradise Rock Club, an 18+ club featuring many concerts, will be holding the event All Souls – A Manray Halloween. There will be Halloween music and dancing for anyone to enjoy.
Salem
Even though this isn’t technically in Boston, Salem is a great place to go for Halloween. It is about a 40 – 60 minute train ride on the Purple line (the fare is a bit more expensive). The site of the Salem Witch Trials, there is a museum specifically for those executions as well as hay rides, haunted trails, and haunted houses.